LAHORE: Chief Minister Usman Buzdar says the rules of business for the functioning of south Punjab civil secretariat have been formulated with great perseverance and will be presented before the provincial cabinet for final approval at its meeting scheduled for Tuesday (today).

Chairing a meeting at chief minister’s secretariat on Monday, Buzdar reviewed the final draft of the rules of business for south Punjab secretariat.

Addressing the participants, the chief minister maintained that the rules of business had been formulated with hard work. He said the south Punjab secretariat would be given administrative autonomy while a separate budget had been ring-fenced.

He said a separate ADP book for south Punjab had also been compiled and work was in progress according to the priorities of residents of south Punjab.

Law minister Basharat Raja, finance minister Hashim Jawan Bakht, chief secretary, ACS, ACS (south Punjab) and others attended the meeting.

PDM: The chief minister says the PDM alliance has ended in fiasco as the unnatural combination of 11 miscellaneous parties could not last for 11 months because of internal differences and entropy.

Mr Buzdar said the PDM should revisit its ‘negative’ approach as the ‘failed’ Karachi meeting was writing on the wall for them.

NOTABLES: In a meeting with the tribal elders at Fort Munro, CM Usman Buzdar said the scope of Koh-i-Suleman Development Authority (KSDA) had been extended to the tribal areas of Rajanpur, along with DG Khan, for providing civic amenities to the locals.

“Being a localite, I know the issues,” he maintained and added that the past rulers deliberately ignored backward areas.

Mr Buzdar said the PTI government was striving to ensure composite development and as a result of sustained government efforts, the backward districts had become part of the development process.

PARLIAMENTARIANS: CM Usman Buzdar met minister Dr Akhtar Malik, MPAs Saleem Labar and Qasim Langah at Multan Airport and told them that the government was in the right direction and added that he did not believe in a one-man show.

Mr Buzdar said the decisions were being made with consultation and added that he would take everybody along. He said the development schemes of Multan city would be completed in time.

Published in Dawn, August 31st, 2021